The Hypno - Home - Water Birth of Tristan Phoenix

The Power of Visualization In the evening on September 10th 2008 I began having what I jokingly called "uncomfortable" Braxton Hicks contractions. I thought it might have been my early birthing time and made jokes about the baby coming on the one day in September, the 11th, that I had asked him not to. Of course I now know that by fixating on that day - I made it happen! Earlier in the day I had experimented with acupressure points which seemed to work bringing on a few short and painless surges. I went to bed as usual but listened for the first time to Easy First Stage a hypnosis track which uses the cues and techniques I'd been practicing to create a deep level of hypnosis, and comfort during birth. and at around 3:30 am (just as I'd visualized many many times) I woke up. I went to the bathroom, had a glass of water and a snack, got in bed and went back to sleep listening to the East First Stage track again. By 5:30am I could no longer sleep through the waves and my husband was snoring and tossing so much I couldn't concentrate on the script. (Now-a-days I've adapted my hypnobabies techniques to help me sleep through all that. They are truly tools for life.) I told him what was going on, sent him to the guest bedroom and sat down on my birth ball and folded an enormous pile of laundry while continuing to use my Hypnobabies techniques.

We called the midwives at 7:30am and told them what had been happening. I was still able to talk and walk and carry on a perfectly normal conversation between waves and my light-switch (the main hypnobabies technique which allows mommas to shift in and out of hypnosis at literally the flip of a switch!) was working very well for me as I would drop into a deep squat and visualize my special place - unfortunately as I now know is quite common for Hypnobabies mommas this led the midwife to believe I was still in very early labor. She told us to call back in an hour. As the hour passed my pressure waves got much stronger and I retreated to the bedroom again and to lay down. The waves were intense when I laid down and I found I had an intense need to get up and be moving through each one. My girlfriend arrived and immediately settled into a routine with my husband taking turns rocking with me massaging me and using hypnobabies cues to deepen my hypnosis and strengthen my hypnotic anesthesia. Soon after, the first midwife arrived. She checked me and I was already at 5cm. I think this was around 9:30 or 10:00 am. I was way ahead of my visualizations. My birthing time with my daughter was a hearty 36 hours, for this one I was just hoping to cut that time in half. Little did I know at that time it would be less than a quarter.

The Power of Suggestion I was managing the increasing waves very well. Visualizing, doing my "birthing dance" and singing my "birthing song" as my husband has taken to calling them. I was getting an increasing amount of bloody show - very exciting since I didn't see any with my first birth and though I tried listening to the script again I decided I really wanted quiet. The same thing happened with both children, I made hours of playlists and mix CDs and never wanted to hear any of it. At around 11:30am ( I think ) I felt a very strong surge and an incredible tearing feeling down below which at first made me panic but as soon as I realized it was my water breaking I looked down to make sure it was all clear. It was! I remember quite clearly looking out the widow at the beautiful day my baby was to be born into and smiling. (Ididn't know then that I was pre-programmed to have that response by my hypnosis :-) At this point my pressure waves became incredibly strong and completely different.

The Power of Thoughts I was afraid of transformation. With my first baby I had been transferred to the hospital and given an epidural during that part. It was only about 90 mins of epidural but still, I had slept through my first experience with it and I didn't know what to expect. Transformation is the perfect word for it because for 20 minutes I transformed from the highly positive, well informed, incredibly practiced mother into a crying disheartened mess. I thought the discomfort would be all I had to contend with but never realized the incredible hormonal circus that goes on at that time. I remember my girlfriend reminding me to use my light-switch and in a panic saying, "I don't have one, I can't find it, Its gone." (Hah!) Had I known that this would only last 15 or maybe 20 minutes I might not have been in such a panic. You see, for my entire pregnancy, even through using the Hypnobabies program I never believed I could make it through transformation in comfort and because of that constant conscious and subconscious reinforcement - I made that my reality. I just kept thinking about my previous birthing experience and thought I had hours of this ahead of me. I now understand that my constant negative thoughts about transformation caused exactly the scenario I had feared. Further proof of the power of thoughts. But, even through transformation and not being able to "find my light switch" the programming was still in place. With each intense transforming wave I went down into a deep squat and clung to the visualization of my cervix as a blossoming lotus, a golden ring. I could feel it opening those last couple of centimeters with each intense wave. I even repeated the word "Open Open Open" to myself not knowing I had been trained to do so by the hypnosis tracks.

Freedom of Movement During much of the last hour my husband had been frantically filling the birth pool. No one would let me get in because they knew if I did - the baby would come and the homebirth midwife had not yet arrived. My dear hubby was also afraid of the hot water running out and so it was WAY TOO HOT and they were now filling it with cold water and ice cubes. I was begging to get in and finally decided I was going to and no one was going to stop me so I made my way down the stairs to the living room where we had set it up determined to get in no matter what the temperature. On my way to the pool I had 3 pressure waves that were entirely different from the others. I was bracing myself for the intensity I’d been feeling and discovered a completely different feeling - downward movement. I realized I could FEEL my baby descending. By the 3rd one which happened standing right next to the pool I was hanging in a very deep squat on the recently arrived midwife's assistant and I made an incredibly primal guttural sound. Being far to well read about what goes on during birth I sort of removed myself from the situation in that moment and realized Oh my God, I made that sound? I know what that sound means! My baby is nearly here! I climbed into the pool which was HEAVEN. Everyone should have the opportunity to birth in water I cannot recommend it highly enough. Next time the only thing I would do differently is start filling that pool from the get go!

Being left to ones own resources and not being ordered around or limited the way we are in a hospital I assumed, without thinking, the most natural position for what was needed at the time and probably the deepest squat my body could have made - clinging to the side of the pool like a swimmer about to kick off into a back stroke. I had one incredible pressure wave there during which the midwife assistant said "tell us when you feel the head". At that very moment I was experiencing the most amazing sensation of the baby's head whooshing around my pubic bone and waiting at the doorway. It was so awesome and I was so overcome with sensation and brain befuddlement that all I could get out was "HEAD!!!"

The Power of Water I remember throughout the previous weeks reading about gentle birthing and breathing the baby down and I remembered the almost violent desperation of my pushing during my first birth experience and thought - there is no way I can NOT push. But when I relaxed into the water and my husband jumped in behind me my Hypnobabies training kicked right back in and I was able to do just that. It was quiet, and calm. I remember floating in the ring of my husbands arms surrounded by women I trusted and just sort of gently nudging him along with hardly any effort given to pushing. The midwife announced his head was out and I hadn't even noticed. There is a fantastic picture of me in the water reaching down to touch his head (another thing I never thought I'd be able to do) and smiling this big goofy grin. THAT is childbirth! In this picture you can see me smiling and calmly floating in the water between waves. What you don't see (because I cropped the image) is that my son's head has crowned. During a time many women refer to as the "ring of fire" Hypnobabies helped me be so relaxed and calm that it was more like a ring of butter! Moments later he was laying on my chest and we were all crying. Then the other Midwife, (the one who usually does home births) arrived! she missed it by 2 minutes and my sister who was racing down from Boston came in 5 minutes after that - she was so upset that she missed it!

All 8lbs 7oz of perfect baby boy arrived in about 7 hours at 12:15 on September 11th. Due to the date I lost the middle name argument with my husband. How can you argue against Phoenix on a day like that.

I've read so many fantastic birthing stories and wished and hoped and prayed that I would have a birth even close to some of those stories and in the end It was absolutely perfect, morning sun streaming in through the windows, thoroughly supported, trusting in my baby and my body.